Requires limited use motorcycles to have a red tag attached to the charging cord which states to unplug when not in use.
Summary
This bill amends a 2024 law that already required red warning tags on charging cords for micromobility devices and bicycles with electric assist. It expands that requirement to include limited use motorcycles (mopeds), requiring manufacturers, distributors, assemblers, reconditioners, sellers, and retailers to ensure the charging cord has a red tag that clearly states “UNPLUG WHEN NOT IN USE.” The tag must also include additional consumer safety information about safe use of the product and its charging equipment, and it must be attached near the end of the cord that plugs into the power source.
The bill also directs the Department of State to issue regulations guiding the required consumer safety information and to post a model tag that businesses can use. It renumbers the existing statute from General Business Law section 399-nnn to section 495-b and aligns the effective date with the underlying 2024 chapter law it amends. The bill is focused on consumer safety and fire-risk reduction associated with charging lithium-ion battery-powered mobility devices.
Impact
The bill broadens New York’s product-labeling and consumer-safety requirements for charging cords by adding limited use motorcycles to the existing red-tag mandate for micromobility devices and electric-assist bicycles. It affects manufacturers, distributors, assemblers, reconditioners, retailers, and other sellers of these products, who must ensure compliant warning tags are affixed before sale. It also gives the Department of State rulemaking and model-tag responsibilities, thereby adding administrative guidance to the statute and reinforcing statewide safety labeling standards for battery-powered mobility products.
Sentiment
The bill appears to have broad bipartisan support and little visible opposition. It passed the Assembly Consumer Affairs and Protection Committee unanimously, then passed the Assembly floor 147-0 and the Senate floor 60-1. The voting pattern suggests the measure was viewed as a straightforward consumer protection and safety bill rather than a controversial policy change.
Contention
There is little evidence of substantive contention in the available record. The main policy issue is the scope of the warning-label requirement—specifically, whether limited use motorcycles should be treated the same as micromobility devices and electric-assist bicycles for purposes of charging-cord warnings. Any concern would likely center on compliance burdens for sellers and manufacturers versus the public-safety benefit of clearer battery-charging warnings, but the near-unanimous votes indicate those concerns did not generate significant opposition.
Definitions and registration requirements for motorized bicycles and motorcycles powered by electric motors modified, sellers required to have a dealer license, certain vehicles prohibited from using public roads, and money appropriated.
Prohibits sellers of bicycles with electric assist, electric scooters, and limited use motorcycles from selling to persons less than sixteen years of age; requires valid proof of age at the point of purchase; establishes penalties for violations of this requirement.